Ground-breaking
patient data system

A ‘ground-breaking’ project which has received £1 million NHS funding is to install a new IT system to allow doctors across Lincolnshire to see a patient’s complete medical records for the first time.

The Care Portal, is set to be ‘phased in’ across the county over the next two years, and will allow health and care professionals, who previously had only been able to see data held on their own systems, to access, with a patient’s permission, complete medical and care records, helping make decisions quickly and appropriately.

Consultation with clinicians and residents revealed lack of access to full records as a key problem. Eventually, patients may also be able to access their own records. The initiative was developed by the Lincolnshire Health and Care (LHAC) programme – a partnership of 13 health and care organisations to improve service delivery.

Gary James at Lincolnshire East Clinical Commissioning Group, which led the project, said it is a major step to improving the quality and safety of care, reducing duplication of tests and asking patients to repeat information.